Knights of the Old Republic: The New Order
by Arcaner
Summary: Revan and the Exile, the two strongest of their age, leave behind them a shatter order with several bright, but ultimately unsure, Jedi to recreate and steer the Jedi. The Legacy of Revan and the Exile, the rebirth of a New Order, and a new Shadow of Evil
1. Aftermath Thoughts

Chapter 1: Aftermath

**_EDIT:_** _Due to revising, and the help of a friendly reviewer, I have fixed a lot of the smaller typos along with some common errors, like Bastila's name (Which bugs the crap out of me, that I spelled it wrong I mean.) I apologize to everyone who read the version prior to this and hope you will give me the benefit of the doubt. Thanks for the support._

_**Legend**_

_Italics show thoughts_

**Underline/Bold show date, time, location**

**0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000**

_**Dantooine**_

Another beautiful evening on the newly peaceful Dantooine. A gentle breeze bending the knee high grass towards the setting sun which was descended over the northern horizon. A small fire to warm the weary travelers as they returned from their long journey. And the twinkling stars dancing into sight as the sun set and took with it the light that blocked them from view.

In a brown and tan Jedi robe, Bastila, stared up at the multiplying stars in the sky, knowing that hundreds of those balls of fire were heating just as many of solar systems, allowing life to grow on the surface of numerous worlds.

The Universe was surely a vast place…almost too vast.

It had been two years since he had left. Two long years since he said no one could follow, that where he intended to tread was a place so dark that to take anyone with him would be death…and the life of his companions he would not gamble.

She remembered when he had left, left everything, even her. Even she who loved him and was loved by him, she who he had strove so hard that day on the Star Forge to call back into the light. The day, roughly five years ago, she accepted the love of the most powerful Force user the galaxy had ever seen.

A man who turned a defeated Republic into a force that would destroy a people who lived for battle and war, for struggle and strife; the Mandalorians, and their leader Mandalore. The same man who entered the regions of unknown space and returned a Dark Lord of the Sith to conquer the people he had protected only to be cast down by his apprentice. And finally it was the same man who rose up once more and ended everything he had started, on his own with only a handful of companions.

A Jedi Knight, a Dark Lord of the Sith, a Jedi Master. Both a man who had walked into the deepest depths of the Dark-side and basked in the greatest of glories that were the Light. A master of both sides, a man whom the titles Master and Darth meant nothing, he was simply -- Revan.

But he was gone, gone from her sight and from her Force awareness. He had passed beyond her and she could not gain any more of his being, be it better or worse. It had hurt her, shaken her to her core, when he left, yet she understood why he did it. Only he could remain unharmed, uncorrupted, pure even. Only he could and so he left alone and she could only watch.

But time moved on and events began to stir. She had helped Carth Onasi to stabilize the Republic and found herself powerless against invisible Sith foes. That was before the Exile came and defeated them though. But even she, the only person who might have known or been able to learn something of Revan, left. She, it seemed, was strong enough to walk Revan's path. It pained her to think that another woman had the strength she did not…but such was the will of the Force, and she was content with the simple knowledge that Revan loved her, and only her.

But time moved on and the Jedi, scattered and weak, came together. Bastila, Jolee, who surprised all by showing that he had survived Darth Nihilus's attack on Katarr, Juhani, and the Jedi companions of the Exile gathered at the ancient temple of the Jedi on Corcuscant. There they convened and spoke of the future of the Jedi, and of the fallen Order. The question had been of what to do without any of the artifacts to teach. The answer came almost as soon as it was delivered, in the form of an Echani Handmaiden who had brought the relics that her newly fallen teacher had kept so secretly.

That day, roughly two standard years and a half ago, those present were convened as Jedi Masters, tasked with the rebuilding of the Order.

And here she was, Master Shan, with two apprentices of her own. Bastila looked to her right at the sleeping forms of her two students. One was a young girl of seventeen, a native Corcuscanti. Drabbed in the basic garbs of a apprentice she added a slight bit of flair in the form of a ribbon tied around her left sleeve, a keepsake of her family that the Order allowed her to keep. The new Jedi didn't have time to bark about everything. She had a bright golden mound of hair on her head, tied into a bun. The girl had originally been pale skinned, but time out in the sun had darkened her a few shades, which didn't help the image she held…she was a short girl for her age and thinner then Bastila though safe.

The other, a young man of twenty, was an actual survivor of Taris, the planet that Darth Malak had bombarded. He happened to leave the planet just one day ahead of Malak's blockade of the world. He refused the robes of an apprentice and wore instead his tanned leather pants, matching shirt, and leather jacket. He looked more ruffian then anything else. To match his clothing were his features, dirty brown hair, the kind naturally looked unclean, that he kept just short enough so it didn't get in his face, and a dark complexion from rough days in the sun. He was a brutish looking boy, with strong muscles and stockier then most but he always said it was better to be compact anyway.

Sighing to herself she wondered how she ended up in this. The new Council decided on taking older students, mostly due to the example set by the Exile's companions who were all trained later in life but still possessed the skill of those who had been raised from youth. But it was mostly because of time, they never knew when a new threat might come…they needed trained Jedi soon, Jedi who could fight, who could defend their new Order.

Bastila closed her eyes and felt their presence though the Force. Lallia, the girl, was quiet and content in her dreams, nothing seemed to be disturbing her. The girl had always been uncannily calm, serene, and free of most taints that plagued adolenscents, such as pride, impatience, and arrogance.

_The very traits that lead me to fight Revan and all of our companions. The traits that turned me to the Dark Side, into a Sith…_

Lance, on the other hand, was half-filled with apprehension, almost fear. The new Jedi Master found it disturbing that this was the same feeling she felt in him every time he slept, ever since day one. She had wanted to talk to him about his past, his time before the Order, but he refused each time with that brutish attitude of his, using his body to intimidate, though Bastila could hardly be intimidated by such maneuvers. She had run the thought of creeping into his mind to find the answers but concluded that it would only push him farther from her, and that was not what she wanted.

But more then anything she feared it was because of her. Oh she remembered the day when she felt she could be a master, just as powerful as Vandar or Vrook. She remembered how she was so impatient with the Masters, so headstrong and full of herself,because of her gift with battle meditation. Was such a person, though humbled by her experiences with Revan, fit to teach these two padawans? The feeling seeping out of Lance made her doubt her own ability to teach.

_What would you do, Revan? What would you to with this boy whose past seems to only haunt him. What would you do to make him speak of his fears?_

Bastila looked to the sky and wondered how the rest were doing. Juhani was at the enclave on Dantooine, not far from where Bastila herself was. They were working together, along with Juhani's two apprentices, on rebuilding the Enclave. To have as a second refuge for the new Jedi.

Jolee was at the Temple on Corcuscant. He was, ironically, teaching the youngest of the order in the basics. She had heard that he was quiet popular with the young ones who loved his tendency to forget things, though Bastila knew it was all an act for the children. She never knew that Jolee was such a knowledgeable Jedi, indeed he had known far more than some of the old Masters knew. She was glad that Revan inspired him to leave Kashyyyk.

Though Jolee was not a typical Jedi, not a complete believer of the light. Rather…he was more like Revan, who believed in what was right rather than what was considered correct by the Council. (She last heard that Jolee was trying to instill a sense of…moral thinking in their new students, in making them think for themselves and choose the light out of choice…not because it was right.) Mical, a companion of the Exile, was also in charge of rearing the new younglings.

As for Bastila's non-Force sensitive companions they were known to be going here and there, helping the Republic how they could, even in the small ways.

Bastila sighed and laid on her rolled out bed, a thick blanket essentially, and closed her eyes and drew herself into the deepest confines of her mind. She checked on her apprentices once more, saw them in the same state as they were moments ago, and slept.

--------------------------------------

_**Sleheyron**_

Master Rand, the ex-Sith assassin Atton, was traveling the Outer Rim by himself, searching for any sign of a new threat coming from the Unknown reaches of space. Atton had picked this assignment due to his training as a spy, and the various techniques he acquired from the Sith, refined by the Exile, which would help him remain undetected to all but the most skilled of Force-users.

His current search had led him to Sleheyron, a world controlled by the slug, or so Atton called them. The planet was covered with massive industrial cities, dotted with gas refineries, fuel mines, dozen of slave quarters (slaves were what the Hutts were famous for), and enough landing bays to accommodate a small fleet. It was, like one would expect of a planet ruled by gluttonous Hutts who made their slaves tend to their every need and desire.

Atton had come to this world after hearing of Yuthura Ban's life tale, she was one of the few Jedi who were able to escape and hide from Darth Sion's and Nihilus's Jedi purge. Since the Hutts were a valuable source of fuel for the now healing Republic it was crucial to make sure that no outside force was attempting to cause friction between the two….partners.

_As if a Hutt could be trusted. If they could, I wouldn't be here. _Atton thought sourly. Even though he had gotten over his grief, the feeling of loss he felt when the Jedi Exile left, he still had the bitterness of mind in him. He didn't blame her though, she did what she had to do…even if she gave him the option he knew that he could never have stopped her from leaving, even though he could not come along.

_Angel…_

The new Jedi master, he hated being called Master Rand by the other new 'Jedi', was sitting in one of the few pubs in the cities. It was a nasty place packed with slaves who had nothing better to do during their brief free time than to drink and forget the sorrows of their everyday life. It was sad, but ultimately they had no one to blame. The slave to master ratio was absurd and a coup, if the slaves could motivate themselves, would be a simple matter of bum rushing their fat slug like rulers and killing them.

_Perhaps I should do it myself…than we'd have free gas from here._

Clamping down on the murderous thought Atton reminded himself of the Exile, and how such thoughts had to be controlled and even though the Hutts were a horrible species, most of them anyway, he had to do things the right way.

The pub was dimly lighted and ugly, with broken tables and chairs everywhere, causing most patrons to have to stand. Scattered bottles of various drinks littered the ground, the liquids often dried and making a sticky mess for those that were unlucky enough to walk into it. Atton had put his back to one of the far walls and waited for the contact to approach him. He doubted that he couldn't not be found, since all the women wore skimpy outfits and the male clothing was so worn and tattered that Atton, with his fine Jedi robe that concealed his entire person, stood out like an ignited lightsaber in a dark room.

Approaching from his left a small man, his growth probably stunted from lack of nutrition, came to his side and mimicked Atton's posture. He stood silent for several seconds with a small cup of ale in his hand, though it looked more like poison to Atton's eyes.

After several more seconds, "I've heard a few rumors."

"Really now? I'm shocked." Atton hissed.

Not missing a beat, obviously used to the tone Atton used, probably from his masters, "Some of the Hutts are upset with Vogga's success and accumulating wealth. I believe they intend to disrupt the trade route."

Atton groaned inwardly. _Perfect. _That meant he had to do something about those upstart Hutts and that would mean he would probably end up getting blasted at by brain washed flunkies. Expanding his awareness through the Force, to check his surroundings, he instantly became aware of several individuals who were….restless so to speak, but anxious was probably the better word.

"…This won't end well." Atton muttered.

The man hardly seemed perturbed, "Sorry, Master Rand, there are simply too many eyes on this planet…and I don't want to die."

_Don't do it._ The man reached to his left and pulled a small hold-out blaster from a pocket that had been stitched onto his pants. He pointed the blaster at Atton and got as far as flexing the muscles in his fingers before Atton froze him with the Force.

"Hey now. Starting pulling stunts like that and I'll have to kill you." Atton said, nonchalant, as he took the blaster.

With such a dense body of people around Atton was sure that no one would panic until 'after' the blaster fired. The ex-Sith assassin turned his head to his informant and found him sweating profusely. Not that Atton blamed him, being held against your will without being able to so much as twitch your finger could make anyone a bit nervous.

"Please, I just want to live…I want to escape here and make a better life. If I kill you…"

"Than you get to live a better life, right?" Atton almost laughed, almost. He had tried to sympathize with the man, really Atton wasn't so cold hearted, but he had to be hard to make this man do what he wanted. Had to be cold, like a Jedi, no emotion. Or maybe it was like the Sith? He couldn't find the dividing line sometimes.

Atton released the man, who slumped against the wall with such a sigh of relief that Atton 'did' feel sorry for him. However bad he thought it was on this planet, Atton now thought it was ten times worse. Feeling that irritating sense of guilt and compassion Atton fired a blaster bolt into the ground with one hand, pulling his lightsaber as he dropped the ranged weapon to the ground.

Instantly the room became a frenzy of bodies as people ran for the exits while several other men, of various species, stood and pushed through the crowd to get to the source of the commotion. By the time they got to the scene, though, nothing but a loyal man with a blaster at his feet would be present.

Despite the bitterness he felt he still felt the warmth of her, as if she were nearby. He held on to that feeling at all times. It was that feeling that made him realize that no one need die today, he had what he came for, information, and now he could leave. And leave he would, to plan his next move after reporting to the Council.

--------------------------------------

**_Corcuscant_**

Master Mical, temporary Grand Master of the order for his previous knowledge of Jedi training, history, and his personal demeanor. He wore the flowing brown robes of a Master along with a full body cloak as he passed through the halls of the new Order.

Though he passionately refused to take the position of Grand Master it was, to his extreme dissatisfaction, forced on him. To all those around, even the senior members who traveled with Revan, agreed that he carried that air about him, the air of cautious, analyzing, leadership.

Though unsure of his own ability Mical had set out at once to try and remedy the fatal flaw of the Jedi Order; a lack of training in dealing with the emotions that every being is innately born with. He remembered that to ignore, suppress, was the way he had been taught. He believed that accepting the emotions and learning to cope with them would make the Order stronger, more resilient to the Dark Side.

_After all, we are all born with some measure of taint in us. She showed me that courage was facing evil, not turning from it. Like I had to learn that turning from my Jedi training was a cowardly thing to do._

As the brooding Grand Master returned to the council chambers he heard a beep from his comlink. Pausing for a moment, "Yes?", Mical began walking to his assigned seat.

"We have a hologram from Master Rand, Grand Master." The Order's secretary said.

"Put Master Rand through, audio only." Mical took a mediation position as the crisp, if haggard, voice of Atton Rand poured into his ear.

"Reporting in." Atton started. "I have contact information showing that the Hutts on Sleheyron are making some kind of maneuver to disrupt Vogga's fuel shipments to Peragus, and possibly to take them completely."

Mical breathed in deeply, giving himself time to think. Much to Atton's annoyance by the sound of a very audible grunt. "Very well, I will send you a small group of Jedi reinforcements to allow you to make a decisive move."

Even without the Force Mical could tell that Atton was one of his greatest supporters, simply because Mical was willing to take action and some risk in order to keep the Republic's peace…peaceful. One of the greatest controversies for the new Order was how much it involve itself in the affairs of the Republic. The new Grand Master was intent on keeping the peace even if it meant breaking a few rules, he couldn't even count how many rules the Exile had broken to save Onderon, Telos, and Peragus. Destroyed fuel stations, detonating planets, bringing Mandalorions to Republic aid. Yes, at this time the Jedi needed to show that they were still fighting for the greater good, it is what Mical felt the Force was leading him to think.

"That sounds great, but I know it can't be without a catch." Atton responded finally.

"Two of them will be padawans with their Master." Mical fired back instantly, though retaining his calm.

"…." Atton sighed, "Who is it going to be?"

Mical smiled, "I have just the three in mind to lend you a hand."

**0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000**

**A/N: **Questions galore, eh? Well I planned that, so don't worry. I don't have much to say about this, it is the first chapter and won't show too much. And for those Atton fans who think that Master Rand chuckle shouldn't be so dark...well, just wait until I give my reasoning before you jump down my throat.

Basically I'll update depending on reviews, if I get a lot I feel inclined to update sooner, since I feel more energized by knowing that people find the story interesting. If I get a few I will update, but a tad bit slower. If I get none...well, it depends on me. So, voice your opinions, pointers are always accepted and thanks.

So, review after reading and enjoying! Hopefully

-Arc


	2. The Set Up

Chapter 2: The Set Up

_**Legend**_

_Italics show thoughts_

**Underline/Bold show date, time, location  
**

**EDIT: **Five AM in the morning, haha. Went ahead and fixed the errors that were shown to me by Dreamshell(Many thanks btw). In case some of you are wondering, Word processor automatically makes 'Jedi' into 'JedI'. It bugs the crap out of me when I miss one, so sorry about that. The next chapters will be after vacation and I'll be able to slow down and fix so many of those small things I missed in these past two. Sorry for the trouble!**  
**

**0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000**

_**Sleheyron**_

Feeling significantly more secure in his pilot clothing, the same tattered attire that he had fixed back together time and time again, Atton found himself waiting yet again in one of the slave quarters that he had been able to acquire for his stay on this Hutt infested world.

It had been three days since the incident in the bar and despite the contact's misgivings Atton felt it had gone extremely well, especially since he and the contact had never met in person before. The Jedi Master had, due to complications, used a weak-minded human female to pass along a message to a man that Atton felt, through the Force, to be…different from the group.

The message was to come see him at the bar from before if he heard anything, if he didn't than he wasn't required to show up, or if he was loyal he'd get himself turned in. As it turned out he did both, both alerting his master and giving Atton the information he wanted, a sort of double agent really. Atton had used his Jedi robes to make it easy for himself to be located, that too worked spectacularly.

Before Master Rand completely removed himself from the bar the other night he noted each of the unknown assailants and had spent the time, while waiting for his reinforcements to come, finding those men and…tweaked their memories so that their recollection would be hazy at best. It was a simple job and wouldn't affect them in the least, save for not knowing why they were at the bar to begin with.

After that the contact was tracked down and, with a bit of persuasion, he agreed to keep silent as well. With the loose ends tied up Atton left his contact with only the option of opportunity, to send him information via a secure commlink, if he felt so inclined.

The door to his room slid open without a beep, obviously from a Force-push, and a woman that Atton knew about all too well. He remembered that he had spent sometime trying to find her during the reign of Malak. Bastila Shan, or Master Shan as she was now titled, crossed the living space and stood on the opposite end of the small round table on which Atton's feet rested.

Leaning back in his chair Atton nodded, "Welcome to the pearl of the Outer Rim! The stink pit known as Sleheyron!"

Bastila didn't seem amused, "Indeed, Master Rand." She sat in an empty chair, looked at Atton, and waved her hand, Force pushing his feet off the table.

"Well, geez princess, you could have asked." Feeling just a bit irritated by Bastila's constant cold demeanor towards him, due to his days as a Sith assassin, had caused a rift between the two.

_Not like your once Dark Lord lover was any better than me._

"I'm here to see things go smoothly, any and all negotiations." Bastila remarked.

_Negotiations? With a Hutt? She obviously doesn't know what we had to go through to make the Vogga deal._ Atton shrugged and looked towards his door, "Where are they?"

"I told Lallia and Lance to stay on the ship, with orders to meditate. I didn't want to drag them along until I was properly informed." Bastila answered.

Again Atton shrugged, "You sure those two are able to take care of themselves?"

Bastila seemed insulted, "I assure you Atton," She put significant bite on his name, "that my two apprentices are more than capable of defending themselves. Lance is especially skilled in combat and I have no doubts he'll make a fine Jedi Weaponmaster one day."

Atton's curiosity was piqued, "And the girl?"

Bastila didn't miss a beat, "We are getting off topic, Master Rand, perhaps you should brief me before you start asking questions into the training of my students."

_Ouch, someone is sore._ "Alright, alright. I suppose I should start at the beginning…"

-------------

Lance yawned as he fiddled his blaster, a small hold-out that was famously used as a concealed weapon. Sitting on the loading ramp of Bastila's _Searching Star_, the ship that Bastila Shan used, the Jedi apprentice passed the time by cleaning his blaster.

The ship was a small freighter that could be easily mistaken for a small time cargo ship, and often the three occupants would pretend that it was such, like when they landed on this filthy, stinking planet, or so Lance thought it to be.

Hearing footsteps behind him the fledgling Guardian turned his head just enough to see Lallia coming down the ramp with two small servings of food. Lance frowned, a sense of concern for the girl. Then again, he was always concerned for her, she was just so small, almost a quarter of a foot shorter then himself and slender as well.

"Stop looking at me like that," Lallia asked as she knelt down and put Lance's portion on the ground next to him, "Just because I'm petite doesn't mean I'm defenseless."

_Not in the world I grew up in. _"Heh, I was just worried you'd get blown away in a breeze." Lance joked and laughed, or almost laughed. Lallia hit him before he could make the attempt to chuckle.

"Shut up, scoundrel. Are all the people from Taris like you?"

That hurt, not that Lance would admit it. Him and his mother had lived in the Lowercity for a very long time and only got off the planet due to various family members pulling together to get the two of them off planet. Several days later the planet was blasted into craters by Darth Malak. Or so the story was told.

But the truth was that people were scoundrels on Taris, besides the Hidden Beks, who helped as many people as they could. In fact, Lance planned on joining their gang when he was older. The rest was history, he was orphaned during the Jedi Civil war, grew up alone during the Jedi Purge, and was found almost a year later by the new Order. He had been under their supervision ever since.

"Tsk, are people from Coruscant so stuck up?" Lance shot back.

Lallia huffed and turned away from Lance to eat her food in silence. She always got upset when he labeled her as stuck up for being born into a high-middle class family. His words had no real venom to them, other than the knowledge that Lallia hated being called spoiled. The Jedi male sighed to himself but did not apologize for his words.

_Never was good at apologizing._

_  
-----------------------_

It had taken a half hour but Atton eventually brought Bastila up to speed. There wasn't much information, other than what Atton had been able to drag from his attackers. It was obvious that the only course of action was to go straight to the source and 'negotiate'.

Atton sighed, "And all the searching I've done regarding these rumors about dissention towards Vogga, they're true, or so everything points to it being as such.

"Who are the suspects?"

"Three Hutts, the ringleader being Gallba. He is something like a King on this world, he simply loans money to the other Hutts to make…deals and--"

"--And they pay Gallba back with interest." Bastila finished.

Slightly deflated, but unwilling to allow it to show Atton replied instantly. "Exactly. We just need to get into the compound and 'negotiate'."

"I see. Well, " Bastila seemed relieved, "the problem doesn't seem as large as I originally thought."

Sighing heavily Atton stood up from his seat and went over to the only window in the entire room, a small sheet of glass that was little larger then a human head. The ex-assassin turned around to Bastila and he saw in her face the recognition.

"There is more isn't there?"

Nodding Atton sat down again, "Yeah, and it smells of something worse then a rancor. After the bar incident where I met my contact I went around repressing the memory of that night, the memory of the attackers, and something was curious about them all." Atton leaned forward, building up the suspense.

"Just spit it out Atton."

Grunting loudly he continued, "I learned that it wasn't Gallba that sent them out to attack me, in fact, I found out that Gallba didn't know anything about me, the contact, or those men that attacked me. Funny thing was, none of the men I tracked down could remember either."

Bastila shook her head, "You can't be saying you believe a Force-user was behind this?"

"I can't think of any other explanation. And believe me sister, no one can hide from me."

"I did."

"…Without the Force." Atton muttered softly.

Bastila seemed about to rebuke Atton's claim when the air took a dramatic shift. Both Jedi Masters jumped out of their seats as the calm of the Force was shattered by a violent upsurge. Murderous intent filled the air, but it seemed faded, strained; meaning it was not in the immediate surroundings. Though Atton was working to pinpoint the general vicinity Bastila already knew the location.

Bastila sprinted, using the Force to slide the door so she wouldn't have to slow down. Instantly understanding the situation Atton quickly followed his fellow Council member. The two of them ran towards the turbo lifts, both of them using the Force to hold the platforms in place until they arrived.

Once inside Atton grabbed the female by the arm, "I thought you said they could defend themselves! You said the boy was a good duelist!"

"It's not Lance I'm worried about!" Bastila cried, "Lance is strong, tougher, and more willing to fight." Ripping her arm away she began to pace as the Turbolift descended to ground level. "But Lallia…she isn't used to these situations, without me she loses her nerve and becomes fearful."

"But if the boy is able to fight then they should be fine until we arrive!" Atton's attempt to sooth Bastila was quickly shot down as the fiery women turned on her heels towards him. The look in her eye told him everything he needed to know.

It wasn't that Lance wouldn't protect Lallia, it was a question of if he could. It was a common enough problem with the Gaurdian class, they were excellent fighters to be sure but they lacked many of the higher Force abilities which meant that Lance would have to fight one or two enemies at a time, and if one avoided him and went for the girl…

_This is why I didn't take an apprentice!_

_-----------_

Finishing his food Lance stood up and stretched. He looked to his fellow student and let out another large sigh. Letting his shoulders drop he walked over to Lallia, "Look I-"

"Don't bother, I'm over it anyway." Lallia looked up at Lance, who was now looking away from her and off into the distance, "Hey! You should look at someone when they are talking to you, especially when they are saying that--"

"Be quiet."

Normally Lallia would have unloaded with all the fury a female could unleash. But the tone he used, the very rare, and serious, tone that she had heard only a few times meant that he was not joking with her. Normally he carried a very mocking, almost uncaring, manner of speaking…so for him to be serious must mean something was wrong.

"What is it?"

Lance shook his head, "I don't know, just a feeling." He walked over to Lallia and took her by the wrist and pulled her up the ramp, "Go inside and close off the hatch, I'll comm you when I feel its safe."

"But--"

"Go! If something happens I don't think I can watch out for both of us, and I'm not going to have you fighting while Master Shan isn't around! Go!" Using the Force he nudged Lallia into the ship, she went grudgingly. Moments later the ramp came up.

Taking a deep breath Lance reached for his lightsaber, "Whoever you are, come on out." When he turned around he found three men clad in black armor, armed with repeating blasters and vibroblades at their hips.

"Surrender, Jedi fledgling, and hand over that saber." The middle man, and leader as far as Lance could tell. His black armor differed by the red streak dragged diagonally across his breastplate, and he had a rather bulky gadget attached to his right forearm. The other two both had a single colored dot on their attire, both of them being red.

"A lightsaber is the life of a Gaurdian." Lance countered. He thumbed his saber to life, an turquoise colored blade springing to from the hilt. The bluish-green blade cast its light on the concrete flooring as Lance brought the blade up in the Form V ready stance.

Form V had two aspects, or philosophies. Djem So was one half of the form, the aggressive philosophy of the form that relied on parrying a blow and instantly retaliating with an attack of their own, using the force of their opponents attack against them to dominate a duel. The other side of Form V was Shien, a more defensive style used mainly to fight several enemies at once, a wait and strike form of combat.

Since Lance was a muscular and rather strong being he had focused on the more offensive Djem So, which also suited his personality. He took the forward stance of Form V, holding his blade tightly with both hands, and waited for his attackers to make a move.

"Humph, the child thinks he has the balls to beat us." The red streaked one laughed. He made a sign with his hands and the other two chuckled before dropping their blasters and reaching for their vibroblades, obviously intent on showing up the Jedi padawan in close combat.

_Bad move._ Lance sprung forward, leaping several yard forward with the Force, and closed the gap between him and the armed assailants instantly. By the time the two men had pulled their blades Lance was already feet away.

Landing hard on his feet Lance brought his blade around as he spun, his blade rising above his head before crashing down as he completed in spin. The aim of the turquoise was reared towards the leader but found itself blocked by the targets blade.

"Humph, flashy." The leader pushed Lance back as his two accomplices attacked from both sides. Lance sprung into the air as they swung, both blades slicing the air where his chest had been. Once returned to the ground the Gaurdian spun to his right, swinging his blade with him, to attack.

The attack was parried and Lance was again pushed back, but the outcome changed, the Form V user used the backwards momentum to spin towards the man now at his back to parry his vertical strike. Lance's blade flashed back and forth between his two enemies, parrying one blow and turning to strike at the other.

"Back up!"

Lance barely had the ability to parry the attack from the leader, who seemed to have grown impatient. His blade came low towards his midsection and to counter Lance drove his blade downward towards the ground. Not missing a beat the padawan immediately turned towards the confused man to his right and brought his blade strike, feinted, and sprung up over the mans head. The Jedi landed with his back to the man, spun, and sliced him in two.

"Huttspawn!" The other red dotted assailant barked as he watched his partner fall to the ground. He made to move forward but found himself cut off as his leader stepped in front of him.

"Don't bother, we're running out of time. Get the girl from the ship and leave this one to me." He pointed towards the ship and made another hand signal to him.

"No!" Moving quickly Lance sprinted to intercept the attacker only to feel a wave through the Force, an obvious warning for danger. Turning towards the leader he found himself being pointed at by the gadget on the leader's forearm. Lance realized what it was the moment before it fired.

_Rocket launcher!_

Instantly Lance knew he had to do something, just dodging the rocket would collide with the ship, that wasn't an option. Getting stranded on this planet would not do at all. Cutting it wouldn't do any good either.

With only one option left Lance struck out with his left hand he focused all of his mind on the missile that was heading towards him, urging it to veer off course just enough to avoid the _Searching Star_. The projectile came out of its launcher and began its course towards Lance.

Everything slowed down, he could feel the Force wrapping around the explosive, pushing it away from its intended course. He felt the strain on his body as he pushed his mind to work faster than he had even thought possible. He had less than a second to throw it off.

Lance closed his eyes, pushing harder, felt a gust of wind, and sighed. _Safe._ The missile, instead of slamming directly into the _Searching Star_, grazed the top of the ship, rolled out of control and exploded.

"The hell?" The leader looked to his arm, "You moved my arm you damn freak."

It was true, the only way he felt he could move the rocket in time was to first move the leader's arm as far as he could and then focus on the rocket as it fired. Doing both of those things gave him the edge he needed to him and Lallia…at least for now.

Red Streak seemed fairly upset by his next word, "….Time to die, Jedi."

---------------

"Was that an explosion!"

"Do you always ask obvious question?!"

"Only when it suits me, princess."

The two had been bickering the whole time they were speeding through the streets towards the landing bays. The distance wasn't great in actuality but seemed much longer with the dire need to get from point A to B.

As Bastila rounded the last corner to the landing bay, leaving only a straightaway, she turned to find Atton had stopped. "We don't have time to take in the scenery!" As soon as the words were out of her mouth she knew why he had stopped.

They were being followed.

"Don't worry about me, you go tend to your kids, I'll deal with these guys."

Bastila only nodded, knowing full well the abilities of Master Rand. The Exile's companions had often stated that Atton was one of their strongest in fighting, both in lightsaber combat and in Force abilities. It was probably due to Rand's prior affiliation with the Sith and his training with the Exile.

Once the female Master had left Atton turned to their followers, two men dressed in black armor with red streaks on their breast plates. The had repeating blasters in their hands and aimed towards the Jedi Master.

"You guys picked the wrong man to mess with. I'm not like the other Jedi," Atton reached for his lightsaber, "I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty…I'll give you one chance to go back the way you came."

They didn't move an inch and Atton sighed.

_Always the hard way.  
_

**0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000**

**A/N: **First, off sorry about this chapter. It's a Raw chapter without a lot of editing. Why? It's basically because I'm going off on vacation and I wanted to put out the next chapter before I left, I just got done with it moments ago and am leaving within the hour, thus I must use that time to get ready.

So I apologize for some of the sketchy points, I'll be fixing them ASAP when I return. I hope it is still worth reading! Read and Review!

-Arc

PS: You can tell how much I hate the Hutts by the name I used:P


	3. Honor's Awakening

Chapter 3: Awakening Honor

_**Legend**_

_Italics show thoughts_

**Underline/Bold show date, time, location**

**0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000**

_**Sleheyron**_

Juyo, the seventh lightsaber form, and the most dangerous of the seven. It is a style that uses the dark side of the force to fuel a very aggressive fighting style, a style that can draw its user into the depths of darkness and cause him to fall from the light.

Of all the exile's companions only Atton was deemed worthy enough to use this style. As Atton stood facing his two opponents he understood why he was the only one taught that style, because he was the only one capable of it. He had been a Sith and was now a Jedi, a Jedi by choice. He was the only one who could keep his dark tendencies under control, or the most capable of it.

Because he loved her. Because he wanted her to return and see him keeping true to the path. Because he vowed her would never fail her. He liked to think that such was the reason he was deemed worthy of that knowledge.

With the two approaching assailants quickly moving Atton thumbed on his lightsaber, an dark orange, almost red, blade of light emitting from the hilt. Both armored men raised their repeating blasters, took aim, and pulled on their triggers unleashing a barrage of red energy bolts towards the Jedi master who took evasive maneuvers, in the form of Force jumps, and took cover in an alleyway.

Using his Force senses Atton could hear the two men approaching, even as they fired off short bursts from their blasters to keep Atton pinned down. Closing his eyes the Jedi Master began running through several possible ways to get out of this mess. Looking to his left he found several large metal crates, roughly the size of a grown human's midsection. Lifting them up through the Force Atton swung them out of the alley and tossed them in the general direction of his attackers.

The general commotion told him that he had, at the very least, surprised them. He took those precious seconds to Force jump unto the small building to the left of the alley way. Landing in a roll Atton cast his gaze on the attackers, they had just climbed over the crates and noticed his new positioning. They took aim.

Unfortunately Atton wasn't feeling compassionate, not anymore. Rather then using Juyo, and taking a deep risk, Atton reached out with his free hand and pulled on the dark side of the Force and unleashed a stream of blue lightning towards the armored men. It was far easy to control a Force power then attempt to calm himself in the midst of battle.

Atton watched as the attack connected and the men began writhing in pain, firing their rifles in random directions as their bodies twisted from the shocks traveling through their body. The attack lasted for only a few seconds before Atton released them and waved the same hand in a slapping motion, ripping the blasters from the hands of the now collapsed attackers.

_I warned them…_

Leaping down from the building Atton approached cautiously, snapping off his lightsaber as he approached, "See if you guys had just--" A wave in the Force smashed into the Jedi Master, alerting him of extreme danger. From the corner of his eye he caught the right most gunman reach for something on his thigh, a trigger. Bomb. Without thought Atton through himself to the ground and cloaked himself in the Force as both men killed themselves. The explosions were small but Atton was close and he sent rolling across the ground, saved from the majority of the blast by the Force shield he had thrown around himself.

_Huttspawn! They blew themselves up, what kind of maniacs would do that. They know that Jedi don't kill prisoners, why resort to suicide? _

With that thought fresh in his head Atton brought himself to his feet, inspecting the bomb sites. Nothing remained save a helmet that had somehow survived the blast. Picking up the piece of armor Atton looked at it curiously, it appeared normal at a first glance but something in the Force told him to look closer.

_Why do I feel like I've see this before…?_

He felt through the Force, searching for something beyond the normal eye. He found only a faint taint, a presence had touched this helmet long ago and was fading. Atton furrowed his brow, knowing he knew that presence. It was on the tip of his tongue, a name, a person.

Then a creeping, a horrible crawling feeling kept up Atton's spine. And it was that feeling, that sense that reminded him of a name, a person. A being that was both horrible and grand, majestic and terrifying. He remembered the name as if it were branded on his body and knew the person as if he were him.

"No…it can't be, why him? Why now?" The helmet slipped from his grasp, hitting the floor with an echoing clack of metal.

Atton left running.

-------------

_**Sleheyron**_

Lance had always understood that Jedi were not all powerful, that they could be killed by normal people, trained men and women. In fact he knew that during the wars there were people trained to kill Jedi, specialist who were taught to fight the Force.

Even so, he never realized just how a Jedi could be pressed until today. He had tried to intercept the man who was entering the _Searching Star_ but was intercepted himself by the leader of the three men that attacked him, the man with the red stripe on his black armor. With no choice but to fight this man first Lance threw himself into battle, pulling heavily on the Force to bring a swift end to the duel.

The armored leader quickly squashed such hopes. All of Lance's heightened abilities were matched with skill, training, experience, and instinct. After the initial clashing of lightsaber and vibroblade it became obvious that this man was the better fighter and that the Jedi Guardian could not win in a straight fight.

Every slash, every parry, every counterattack that Form IV Djem So taught, for ever blow that Lance turned around and used against his opponent was used back at him. The man was stronger physically, faster mentally, and unflinchingly calm, even with the mask Lance could feel no hint of fear or panic.

_Just icy calm…_

"Losing focus." Lance brought his blade up to block a high downward slash. When the blow connected he saw the mans right leg lash up and kick him in the gut, sending him to the ground.

"When you lose focus you lose boy. Try to at least act like a real Jedi." The man taunted, flipping his blade and switching hands. He looked at the blade and brought it back to his right hand.

"Shut up." Lance barked, quickly rising to his feet. Using a quick thrusting motion, with his free hand, the Guardian pushed out through the Force. The man stumbled back, but retained enough balance to keep his feet on the ground.

In that brief instant Lance leapt forward again, flipping forward, and coming down with a downward cut using the gathered forward momentum to add to the striking power of his attack. The turquoise lighsaber came crashing down on the sharp edge of an opposing vibroblade, but the gathered strength of Lance's attack pushed down the vibroblade down, down, until the blade of light began to burn the helmet of the assassin.

With both parties pushing against the other Lance noticed far too late that the man was positioning his feet, and when the sweeping kick came the Jedi could only fall gracefully and roll away to a safer position. The assassin grunted as he touched the top of his helmet where it had been charred, "You're getting sharper. You'd make a good Sith, if you weren't such a weakling."

Spitting towards the ground Lance took an offensive posture, "There isn't such a thing as a 'good' Sith. They are all bad and they always fail."

The man shrugged, "We'll see kid, we'll see who loses."

_Stay calm, he's just trying to get to you. The Sith are destroyed, destroyed with the death of the Three Sith Lords. _Took a deep breath Lance returned his attention to his opponent. He knew that attacking head on would be futile, but attacking with the Force seemed to be giving him an advantage.

Rushing forward Lance let his light saber trail behind him. As he neared his opponent, who raised his own blade, Lance slashed his blade up in an arc, striking the metal flooring under him, sending a wave of sparks into the man's vision. With those brief seconds Lance vaulted over the head of his enemy and slash horizontally when he had planted his feet. The slash made contact with man's right arm, sliced through it, and hit air as the man dropped to the floor, narrowly missing the head of his attacker.

"Nice job."

That was all the man said before he reached for his thigh, an action that caused Lance to pull his lightsaber back to strike again.

He never got the chance. Before Lance had pulled his blade all the way up he was yanked through the Force, hard. He flew back yards and watched in stunned horror as the man blew himself up, a dazzling array of colors springing to life in front of him.

After sliding across the ground and rolling to a stop Lance quickly began looking for the source of the Force pull. He quickly found the source in the form of an older male who was now approaching his side. Lance recognized him as Jedi Master Rand.

"Are you okay?" Atton asked, his breathing only slightly taxed.

"Never mind me, Lallia needs help and where is Master Shan!?"

"Calm down Lance, I'm right here." Looking over towards the _Searching Star_ the Guardian found both his teacher and fellow student safe and sound. With a sigh of relief Lance deactivated his blade.

Coming over to his side Bastila smiled, "I'm sorry for leaving you like that Lance, when I arrived one of the men had entered the ship and I wanted to check on Lallia first. I didn't meant to leave you in such a situation but I trusted that you could hold your own."

Feeling both relieved and inflated Lance fell back on his back and began the satisfying process of catching his breath. After a moment of silence Master Rand stepped over Lance to speak to Bastila.

"This is going to sound stupid, but, did you happen to notice anything strange about those men?" Atton looked back at the place of suicide with grim foreboding.

Putting her hands on her hips the Jedi Master gave a slight scowl, "Other then their uncanny ability to resist mental persuasion and their apparent knowledge of the Jedi, then no. Do you believe this justifies your theory of Force users being on this planet?"

"No," Atton gritted his teeth, "No, this is worse. We need to get into space, I want to call a meeting of the Council."

Bastila opened her mouth to protest, a meeting of the Masters called because of this? She would have balked at the idea if it were not coming from Atton. The man hated the idea of having to share, argue, and formulate ideas with others. Like he had said a million times the only person who ever told him what to do were his old Sith Masters and the Exile. If Atton wanted to call a meeting, then something had gotten to him…something bad.

-------------

_**Unknown Regions**_

_Awaken…._

He twitched. An insignificant change in the eternal darkness where he slept. A place where not even the light of a star shone, a place of eternal cold, a place of complete darkness. It was suffocating, strangling, restricting. It was total darkness.

_Awaken…_

Again, the voice. He knew that voice, but it had been so long… could it truly be _that_ voice? That voice that once commanded so much power, so much glory, so much awesome might that one could only bow in awe…or die. That voice…

_Awaken….Darth Dacus_

His eyes opened, his eyes a malefic red. A single light blinked into existence in the Force, a singular life that now challenged the darkness. The awakened one reached out with his mind, spoke softly, urging them through the darkness.

"It is time…awaken."

And it began. Where once one light stood in a perfectly dark world they began to appear, small lights signifying life, all awakening to life. One, ten, hundreds, thousands…hundreds of thousands, a testament of his power. They all awoke, one at a time. What he had once put to sleep now rose with him.

He saw it all in his minds eye, the life, and then with his worldly eyes he saw the other lights. The lights of machines, of electricity, of ships. They came on in massive groups, war ships, star fighters, freighters, star destroyers. An armada had awakened.

"My Lord Dacus. I trust your sleep was peaceful?"

The lights had come on in his chamber, a small circular chamber for meditation. He was turned away from the officer who had entered and spoke to him. His first in command, his Fleet Admiral. His name had not yet returned to his memory but it would come soon…everything would come soon.

"Is it time, M'lord?"

The awakened one stood, his black robes flowing behind him. Turning on his heels he walked part his Admiral with the slightest of motions to signal that he was to follow. He walked down the halls of his command ship, watching as his men began to return to their duties, each bowing as he passed through their vision.

They emerged on the command deck and the awakened one went to the viewing station, crossed his arms, and nodded solemnly.

"Yes, it is time. Let Darth Revan's will be done."

**0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000**

**Author's Note: **This chapter came out a lot shorter then I pegged it for. I could have added the scene with Lallia and her attacker but I wanted to save that for the next chapter. Still, just coming off a vacation, which is why I haven't updated, I don't think this chapter came out so bad, though it might be a bit rough around the edges. For those of you that might wonder Dacus is a variation of the word Decus which can mean Honor. Why did I choose Honor? You'll have to wait and see to find out!

I can't be sure of my next update, I've got two stories to update next. One of them will be very lengthy while the other will be longer then this but more manageable. So I'd say two weeks or so before I can make a solid update. Hopefully I haven't lost anyone and those of you that are new I hope you enjoyed what you read so far!

-Arc


End file.
